Policies
In this document:
Please read the entire document before your first post to the list, as it explains BYU MUG’s list policies and contains a few words about the culture of this group.
The following represents good netiquette among most user groups, mailing lists, the internet, and digital communications in general.
Mailing list policies
In order to keep the list a useful and annoyance-free place for everyone, there are a few policies to observe. These policies are intended to make the lives of everyone on the list easier, including you, so please take them to heart.
- Please use these instructions to leave the group. Instructions are/were also emailed to you when you joined the list. Don’t make the whole list sad over your departure by mailing them about it.
- Do not crosspost between lists. Send individual copies of a message to each list if you must, but do not send a single message to multiple lists. That holds true for any mailing list, not just this one.
- Trim your replies. If you have more quotation than original text, think about cutting down on the quoted stuff. The list members can look at the message to which you responded, or check the archive. Prune that quoted text with ruthless abandon. Everyone else will thank you for it, especially the list admin(s). Don’t forget, thankful list admins are less hasty with the unsubscribe button.
- The list admin(s) will scowl heavily in the direction of any Jeopardy-style quotations—that is, putting your answer before the quoted question to which you’re responding (also called top posting)—but won’t actually unsubscribe you for doing it. Unless you keep doing it without trimming down your quoted text (see above).
- Do not hijack threads. Hijacking a thread is starting a new thread by replying to a message and changing the subject. If you are going to start a new thread, compose a new message instead of
replying. Part of the headers of an email message contain information that is used to group messages together as a thread. Simply changing the subject does not detach a message from grouping. Many email clients sort message via the messages thread and therefore will falsely categorize or even “rule out” a message hijacked message. - Keep your signature file short. Five lines should be more than enough for anybody, but the fewer the better. One-line signatures automatically get good karma points from the admins.
- No solicitations of employment or requests for applications directly to the group. Please see contact BYU MUG administration for instructions on notifying members of employments opportunities.
- While we are interested in announcements of new tools, software, designs, publications, and other resources, do not send advertisements to the list. In other words, a one-time announcement like “I just purchased a new Powerbook and am interested in selling my old one” is okay, but “Check out my ebay store and I’ll give you a 30% discount!” is not.
- We encourage discussion and debate, and don’t mind if it gets a bit heated. However, this does not mean you can flame other list members. If you think someone’s flaming you or being needlessly offensive, take it up with them in private e-mail. If they get abusive, discuss it with the list administrators (the e-mail address is in the headers of every list message). Don’t take it onto the list. Regardless of how long you’ve been online, I highly recommend a reading of the following article.
- If you’re asking for help with a problem, then remember this: A description of your problem is good. A URL to a page showing your problem is much, much better. The two together are sometimes referred to as “mythical” or “legendary.” Be a part of the legend.
- Try not to offend other list members, or to feel offended by them. See the section below titled “offensensitivity” for more.
- No HTML or RTF (rich text) e-mail period, end of story, full stop. Your mail client should let you configure it so you can send plain text messages. Make use of this ability. If it does not, there are plenty for free ones that do.
- Do not send attachments to the list. Ever. Put whatever you were going to attach on a Web site and post the URL instead.
- If you post from an address other than the one you subscribed, your message will bounce. What we do at that point will probably depend on our mood. Don’t risk it. Send messages from your subscription address and avoid the hassle.
- If your address starts bouncing, you will be removed from the list. You will not be notified of this, as we don’t keep a list of secondary addresses. It’s your responsibility to resubscribe once the problem with your address has been fixed. “Bouncing” includes vacation autoresponders that e-mail either the list or people who post to the list. If we notice or get complaints about either, you’ll be unsubscribed right away.
- Did we mention that there’s an unsubscribe function available for use when you decide it’s time to go?
- People who violate the goodwill of the list community will be unsubscribed with extreme prejudice. Not to mention haste.
Offensensitivity
(The word “offensensitivity” was, so far as I’m aware, first used by Berke Breathed in Bloom County.)
When posting to BYU MUG-list, remember that your message can be sent to (literally) hundreds of people all over the world. They all have likes and dislikes as individual as your own. They will also be offended by certain things which you may not find remarkable. While you can’t foresee every potential area of conflict, there are certain guidelines that are fairly obvious: avoid swearing, cultural insults, blasphemy, proselytizing, and things of that nature. If you wouldn’t say it out loud in front of your grandmother while in a place of worship, then you probably shouldn’t say it on the list either.
At the same time, recognize that you are receiving messages from (literally) hundreds of people all over the world. They all have likes and dislikes as individual as your own. They will also not find remarkable certain things by which you may be offended. Odds are that they probably didn’t set out to offend you on purpose, so try taking a deep breath and counting to a nice high number if you feel a rising sense of offense. If, after this calming break, you still feel you must say something, e-mail the poster directly (and not on the list) to explain your feelings calmly, reasonably, and above all clearly without attacking them. They may be unaware of the effect of their words, so this is your chance to educate them. If you just slag them for being “insensitive,” you may get flamed in return and create a resolve to keep offending you just for being so uptight and irrational (from their point of view).
Above all, remember that other people are about as likely to changetheir basic natures and habits as you are to change yours.You may at some point have to make a choice between tolerating other people’s views and participating in the list. Please make this choice privately, and follow through quietly. Thank you.
What to ask and how to answer
BYUMUG-discuss is meant for beginning and experienced users both. We all started somewhere and were all once a newbie. We hope that the more expert among us can help assist newcomers by sharing our collective experience. The general idea of a user group is to be a community where people of similar interests interact, educate, and support each other. The list is intended to be a place for both advanced and beginning topics; including sharing new ideas, tricks, and techniques for using Macs in interesting ways. It is also a good venue to pass along Apple-related announcements that will be of interest to all.
Our philosophy is that there are two kinds of questions: good questions and unasked questions. We much prefer the former. It doesn’t matter how “dumb” you think the question might be, because we guarantee you that at least five other subscribers are wondering the same thing, and will learn from the answer.
There is a flip side to this, which is the answering of said questions. What we ask is this: if you’re answering a practical question, first make the answer practical and directly address the question. Tell the inquirer how to do what they ask. Do not berate or belittle them for asking it. Follow up your answer with “…but here’s something else to consider” if you feel it important to do so, but only after you’ve answered their question.
Simply posting a URL as an “answer” is also discouraged. Back up that URL with a little explanation of what the reference is about, why you posted it, and some keys to understanding the resource you’re referencing. It doesn’t have to be a novel; a line or two will usually suffice. But that line or two will be of enormous help to people reading your message, who may not be as expert as you are.
Above all, if you can’t answer with a modicum of respect, or without feeling somehow annoyed by the question, then DO NOT ANSWER AT ALL. We are dead serious about this. You may have seen and responded to a question six thousand times, but the person asking has only heard it once: when they asked it. They’re asking it in order to fill a gap in their own knowledge. Make your answer an encouragement for more questions, not an incentive to unsubscribe.
Thanks to css-discuss for the majority of the content of this policy page. Used with permission.